The present invention relates to hosiery and a method of manufacturing the hosiery, more precisely relates to hosiery, which is cylindrically knitted by a hosiery knitting machine, and a method of manufacturing the hosiery.
An ordinary sock, which is an example of hosiery, is shown in FIG. 4. The sock 10 includes: a cylindrical section 11 having an upper opening section; and a toe section 12 forwardly extended from a front end of the cylindrical section 11. The toe section 12 is also cylindrically knitted, and finally its open end is sewed to be closed. The sewed section is shown as a line 14, which exists in an upper face of the toe section 12 as shown in FIG. 4.
The sock 10 shown in FIG. 4 can be manufactured by, for example, a circular knitting machine, which includes: a needle cylinder capable of rotating; and a plurality of knitting needles arranged on an outer circumferential face of the needle cylinder, and which is capable of knitting the sock 10 by: rotary action in which the needle cylinder is continuously rotated in a prescribed direction; and pivot action in which the needle cylinder is alternately rotated in a first direction and a second direction, which is the opposite direction with respect to the first direction.
As shown in FIG. 6A, the knitting needle 50 includes: a hook section 52, which is provided to a front end of the knitting needle 50; and an open-close member 54, whose one end is pivotably connected to an axis 56 fixed to the knitting needle 50, whereby the open-close member 54 is capable of opening and closing the hook section 52. On the other hand, the needle cylinder 60 is shown in FIG. 6B. The needle cylinder 60 includes: a cylindrical member 62, and a plurality of vertical grooves 64, which are grooved on the outer circumferential face of the cylindrical member 62 in the longitudinal direction. A plurality of the knitting needles 50 shown in FIG. 6A are respectively slidably fitted in the vertical grooves 64, so each knitting needle 50 is capable of vertically moving in each vertical groove 64. When the needle cylinder 60 is rotated, the knitting needles 50 are lifted upward at a prescribed position or positions so as to knit the sock.
The steps of forming a toe section of a conventional sock, by the circular knitting machine having the needle cylinder 60 and the knitting needles 50, will be explained with reference to FIGS. 5A-5C.
First, a cylindrical section 11 having a prescribed length is knitted, by continuously rotating the needle cylinder 60 in the prescribed direction, until reaching a position A-B shown in FIG. 5C, which shows a bottom face 100a of the conventional sock 100. Then, a toe section 102 of the sock 100 is knitted, by continuously rotating the needle cylinder 60 in the prescribed direction, until reaching a position C-D shown in FIG. 5C. While knitting the toe son 102 between the position A-B and the position C-D, the needle cylinder 60 is pivoted in the first direction and the second direction, and a number of the knitting needles 50, which actually knit the toe section 102, is gradually reduced.
Upon reaching the position C-D shown in FIGS. 5A-5C, the toe section 102 is further knitted, by pivoting in the first direction and the second direction, until reaching the position A-B shown in FIG. 5A, which shows an upper face 100b of the sock 100, and the number of the knitting needles 50, which actually knit the toe section 102, is gradually increased.
Upon reaching the position A-B shown in FIG. 5A, the toe section 102 is further knitted, with prescribed number of the knitting needles 50, until forming an open end in the upper part 100b. Then, the open end is sewed to form the sewing line 14 (see FIG. 4).
In both side faces of the toe section 102, connecting lines A-C and B-D, which are borders between the bottom part 100a and the upper part 100b, are formed. They are formed by mutually entangling thread loops of the both faces. The connecting lines A-C and B-D coincide with ends of pivoting the needle cylinder 60 in the first and the second directions.
In the sock 100 shown in FIGS. 5A-5C, the number of increasing the knitting needles 50 and the number of reducing the knitting needles 50 are substantially same while knitting the toe section 102, so that a knitting direction is fixed and parallel to a center line XA of the sock 100. Thus, the toe section 102 of the sock 100 is symmetrically formed with respect to the center line XA as shown in FIGS. 5A-5C. The thickness of a lower part 102a of the toe section 102 and that of an upper part 102b thereof is the same as shown in FIG. 5B. With this structure, the sock 100 can cover the right foot and the left foot.
In a foot of a man, the big toe is bigger than other toes, and the shape is not symmetrical. Further, a front tip point of the foot is located close to the big toe. In the case of covering the unsymmetrical foot with the symmetrical sock 100 shown in FIGS. 5A-5C in which thickness on the big toe side is equal to that on the little toe side, cloth of the sock is extended, so that the big toe is pressed by the extended cloth. Especially, the big toes sometimes endures pain while doing sports because pressure is concentrated to the big toes. And, the little toe is also pressed by the cloth because the cloth is extended and pulled by the big toe. Furthermore, the part of the sock corresponding to the big toe is always extended and rubbed with an inner face of a shoe, so it is apt to be damaged.
Further, the sewing line 14 (see FIG. 4) is located close to a tip toe or a front end of the sock 100, so the sewing line 14 corresponds to a position between base ends of toes and front ends thereof. Upper faces of toes are always rubbed by the sewing line 14, so the user sometimes gets a blister on his or her foot. Improvement of an external appearance of the sock is also required.